Simon Harris

Simon Harris is the Tánaiste, Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade, and the Minister for Defence. He was appointed to these roles on 23 January 2025.

Previously he served as Taoiseach from April 2024 to January 2025.

Tánaiste Harris has served as a Minister in government, for over a decade, in several portfolios including as Minister for Further & Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science (2020-24), Minister for Health (2016-20), and as Minister of State at the Departments of Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform and Taoiseach with Special Responsibility for the OPW, Public Procurement, and International Banking (2014-16).

He was first elected to Dáil Éireann at the 2011 General Election and was the youngest member of the 31st Dáil. During that Dáil term, Simon served as a member of the Public Accounts Committee, Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, Secretary of the Fine Gael Parliamentary Party and Co-Convenor of the Oireachtas Cross Party Group on Mental Health. Simon has been consecutively re-elected as a TD for the constituency of Wicklow at the 2016, 2020 and the 2024 General Elections.

Prior to his election to Dáil Éireann, Simon was a member of both Wicklow County Council and Greystones Town Council, having been elected in the 2009 Local Elections with the highest percentage vote of any candidate in the country. He has also served his community as Chairperson of the County Wicklow Policing Committee, Chairperson of the Dublin-Mid Leinster Regional Health Forum, Board Member of Wicklow Tourism and Member of Wicklow Vocational Educational Committee.

Simon’s involvement in politics began after he established an Autism support and lobby group in County Wicklow to seek to give a voice to people living with Autism and their families and to articulate their concerns and needs. He works tirelessly as a disability advocate and through his work in the disability area he has first-hand meaningful understanding of issues affecting people with disabilities.

You can contact Mr Harris at simon.harris@oireachtas.ie